make a year; or, as calendar months of unequal lengths, [141] according to the Julian division in our common almanacs, commencing at the calends of each month, whereof in a year there are only twelve. A month in law is a lunar month, or twenty-eight days, unless otherwise expressed, or clearly to be intended; not only because it is always one uniform period, but because it falls naturally into a quarterly division by weeks. Therefore a lease for "twelve months" is only for forty-eight weeks; but if it be for "a twelve month" in the singular number, it is good for the whole year.d For herein the law recedes from its usual calculation, because the ambiguity between the two methods of computation ceases; it being generally understood that by the space of time called thus, in the singular number, a twelvemonth, is meant the whole year, consist ing of one solar revolution. In the space of a day all the twenty-four hours are usually reckoned; the law generally rejecting all fractions of a day, in order to avoid disputes. Therefore, if I am bound to pay money on any certain day, I discharge the obligation if I pay it before twelve o'clock at night; after which the following day commences. But to return to estates for years. years. How terms of years may be Every estate which must expire at a period certain and [ 143 ] prefixed, by whatever words created, is an estate for And therefore this estate is frequently called a term, ter- limited. minus, because its duration or continuance is bounded, limited, and determined: for every such estate must have a certain beginning, and certain end. But id certum est, quod certum reddi potest: therefore if a man make a lease to another, for so many years as J. S. shall name, it is a good lease for years, for though it is at present uncertain, yet when J. S. hath named the years, it is then reduced to a certainty. If no day of commencement is named in the creation of this estate, it begins from the making, or delivery, of the lease. A lease for so many years as J. S. shall live, is void from the beginning; for it is neither certain, nor can ever be reduced to a certainty, during the 74 FSTATES LESS THAN FREEHOLD. [Book III. [143] continuance of the lease. And the same doctrine holds, if a parson make a lease of his glebe for so many years as he shall continue parson of Dale; for this is still more uncertain. But a lease for twenty or more years, if J. S. shall so long live, or if he should so long continue parson, is good for there is a certain period fixed, beyond which it cannot last; though it may determine sooner, on the death of J. S. or his ceasing to be parson there. Terms for years inferior to estates of freehold. It is a settled principle of law, that an estate for years is inferior when compared with an estate for life, or an inheritance as an estate for life, even if it be pur auter vie, is a freehold; but an estate for a thousand years is only a chattel, and reckoned part of the personal estate. Hence it follows, that a lease for years may be made to commence in futuro, though a lease for life cannot. As, if I grant lands to Titius to hold from Michaelmas next [144] for twenty years, this is good; but to hold from Michaelmas next for the term of his natural life, is void. freehold can at common law com turo. For no No estate of estate of freehold can, at common law commence in futuro; because it cannot be created at common law withmence in fa- out livery of seisin, or corporal possession of the land: and corporal possession cannot be given of an estate now, which is not to commence now, but hereafter. And, because no livery of seisin is necessary to a lease for years, such lessee is not said to be seised, or to have true legal seisin of the lands. Nor indeed does the bare lease vest any estate in the lessee; but only gives him a right of entry on the tenement, which right is called his interest in the term, or interesse termini: but when he has actually so entered, and thereby accepted the grant, the estate is freeholds, in then, and not before, vested in him, and he is possessed, not properly of the land but of the term of years; the possession or seisin of the land remaining still in him who hath the freehold. Thus the word term, does not merely signify the time specified in the lease, but the estate also and interest that passes by that lease; and therefore the term may expire, during the continuance of the time ; as by surrender, forfeiture, and the like. For which rea Distinction between terms for years and this and other respects. son, if I grant a lease to A. for the term of three years, and after the expiration of the said term to B., for six years, and A. surrenders or forfeits his lease at the end of one year, B.'s interest shall immediately take effect: but if the remainder had been to B. from and after the expiration of the said three years, or from and after the expiration of the said time, in this case B.'s interest will not commence till the time is fully elapsed, whatever may become of A.'s term." tenancy for Tenant for term of years hath, incident to and insepara- Incidents to ble from his estate, unless by special agreement, the same years. estovers, which we formerly observed that tenant for life was entitled to; that is to say, house-bote, fire-bote, ploughbote, and hay-bote ;P terms which have been already explained. see ante, p. With regard to emblements, or the profits of lands sowed [ 145 ] by tenant for years, there is this difference between him Emblements; and tenant for life: that where the term of tenant for 57. years depends upon a certainty, as if he holds from midsummer for ten years, and in the last year he sows a crop of corn, and it is not ripe and cut before midsummer, the end of his term, the landlord shall have it except there be a custom to the contrary; for the tenant knew the expiration of his term, and therefore it was his own folly to sow what he never could reap the profits of. But where the lease for years depends upon an uncertainty; as, upon the death of the lessor, being himself only tenant for life, or being a husband seised in right of his wife; or if the term of years be determinable upon a life or lives; in all these cases, the estate for years not being certainly to expire at a time foreknown, but merely by the act of God, the tenant, or his executors, shall have the emblements in the same manner that a tenant for life or his executors shall be entitled thereto. Not so, if it determine by the act of the party himself: as if tenant for years does anything that amounts to a forfeiture in which case the emble : 76 2. Estates at will. ESTATES LESS THAN FREEHOLD. [BOOK III. ments shall go to the lessor, and not to the lessee, who hath determined his estate by his own default." II. The second species of estates not freehold, are estates at will. An estate at will is where lands and tenements are let by one man to another, to have and to hold at the will of the lessor; and the tenant by force of this lease obtains possession. Such tenant hath no certain indefeasible estate, nothing that can be assigned by him to any other; because the lessor may determine his will, and put him out whenever he pleases. But every estate at will is at the will of both parties, landlord and tenant; so that either of them may determine his will, and quit his connexions with the other at his own pleasure.w Yet this must be understood with some re[146]striction. For, if the tenant at will sows his land, and the landlord before the corn is ripe, or before it is reaped, puts him out, yet the tenant shall have the emblements, and free ingress, egress, and regress, to cut and carry away the profits. And this for the same reason, upon which all the cases of emblements turn; viz. the point of uncertainty since the tenant could not possibly know when his landlord would determine his will, and therefore could make no provision against it; and having sown the land, which is for the good of the public, upon a reasonable presumption, the law will not suffer him to be a loser by it. But it is otherwise, and upon reason equally good, where the tenant himself determines the will; for in this case the landlord shall have the profits of the land." What act determines a te What act does, or does not, amount to a determination nancy at will. of the will on either side, has formerly been matter of great debate in our courts. But it is now, I think, settled, that (besides the express determination of the lessor's will, by declaring that the lessee shall hold no longer ; which must either be made upon the land," or notice must be given to the lessee a) the exertion of any act of ownership by the lessor, as entering upon the premises and cutting timber, taking a distress for rent and impounding u Co. Litt. 55. b y Ibid. 55. z Ibid. a 1 Ventr. 248. v Litt. s. 68. w Co. Litt. 55. * Ibid. 56. b Co. Litt. 55. of it thereon, or making a feeoffment, or lease for years the land to commence immediately;d any act of desertion by the lessee, as assigning his estate to another, or committing waste, which is an act inconsistent with such a tenure ; or, which is instar omnium, the death or outlawry of either lessor or lessee; puts an end to or determines the estate at will. The law is however careful, that no sudden determination of the will by one party shall tend to the manifest and unforeseen prejudice of the other. This appears in the case of emblements before-mentioned: and, by a parity of reason, the lessee, after the determination of the [147] lessor's will, shall have reasonable ingress and egress to fetch away his goods and utensils. And, if rent be payable quarterly or half yearly, and the lessee determines the will, the rent shall be paid to the end of the current quarter or half-year. And, upon the same principle, courts of law have of late years leaned as much as possible against construing demises, where no certain term is mentioned, to be tenancies at will; but have rather held them to be tenancies from year to year so long as both parties please, especially where an annual rent is reserved: in which case they will not suffer either party to determine the tenancy even at the end of the year, without reasonable notice to the other, which is generally understood to be six months.i will may still And this leaning has gone so far of late, that some have Tenancy at doubted whether an estate at will can now exist, but it is be created. quite clear that it may be created by the express contract of the parties; although it is also well settled, "that what was formerly a tenancy at will by implication, shall now be considered a tenancy from year to year, determinable by half a years notice, expiring at the end of a current year."" Under the head of tenants at will, copyholders are some- c pyholds. c Co. Litt. 57. d 1 Roll. Abr. 860; 2 Lev. 88. e Co. Litt. 55. f 5 Rep. 116; Co. Litt. 57, 62. g Litt. s. 69. h Salk. 414; 1 Sid. 339. i This kind of lease was in use as long ago as the reign of Henry VIII. when half a year's notice seems to * Richardson v. Langridge,4 Taunt. 1 See Mr. J. Coleridge's note; Clayton v. Blackey, 8 T. R. 3; Timmins v. Rowlison, 3 Burr. 1609. |